Film Application Paper
Patricia Warber
October 11, 2011
Film Application Paper
Mean Girls
Speech and communication are a very large part of life. From face to face contact to the media, concepts and theories in human communication are incorporated into daily life. There are many concepts and theories in communication, and specifically introduced in the following paper are five major components of communication. The components of culture and co-culture, non-verbal behaviors, types of listening and barriers to effective listening, attraction and uncertainty reduction theories, and self disclosure will be explained, as well as how they are embodied in the film Mean Girls.
First are the components of cultures and co-cultures. Culture is defined as the totality of learned and shared symbols, values, norms, and language of a group of people. Those four pieces (symbols, values, norms, and language) of the definition are the four major components of culture and co-culture. Symbols are a visual object or image that stands for something else.
Norms are the expectations that others in the culture have in regards to social behavior, such as personal space or greeting methods. The values upheld by a culture are the ways that a particular culture believes their society should behave, for example, qualities such as honesty, equality, and freedom. Language is also a very large component of culture. People within the same culture tend to use the same language, as well as, various forms of slang to communicate. An excellent example of the components of culture and co-culture in the film Mean Girls would be the way the plastics, the group of popular and superficial girls, communicate and act, differently than the rest of their student body because they believe their status and culture is above the others.
Another concept is the concept of non-verbal communication, specifically through kinesics, haptics, physical appearance, and artifacts. Non-verbal communication is considered
October 11, 2011
Film Application Paper
Mean Girls
Speech and communication are a very large part of life. From face to face contact to the media, concepts and theories in human communication are incorporated into daily life. There are many concepts and theories in communication, and specifically introduced in the following paper are five major components of communication. The components of culture and co-culture, non-verbal behaviors, types of listening and barriers to effective listening, attraction and uncertainty reduction theories, and self disclosure will be explained, as well as how they are embodied in the film Mean Girls.
First are the components of cultures and co-cultures. Culture is defined as the totality of learned and shared symbols, values, norms, and language of a group of people. Those four pieces (symbols, values, norms, and language) of the definition are the four major components of culture and co-culture. Symbols are a visual object or image that stands for something else.
Norms are the expectations that others in the culture have in regards to social behavior, such as personal space or greeting methods. The values upheld by a culture are the ways that a particular culture believes their society should behave, for example, qualities such as honesty, equality, and freedom. Language is also a very large component of culture. People within the same culture tend to use the same language, as well as, various forms of slang to communicate. An excellent example of the components of culture and co-culture in the film Mean Girls would be the way the plastics, the group of popular and superficial girls, communicate and act, differently than the rest of their student body because they believe their status and culture is above the others.
Another concept is the concept of non-verbal communication, specifically through kinesics, haptics, physical appearance, and artifacts. Non-verbal communication is considered